Ten lanes of the 101 now pass under a concrete bridge with about 6,000 native plants growing on top. Just south of it, a second overpass now spans Agoura Road. The Los Angeles Times visited the site on Oct. 7. That late morning, crews were laying soil in layers and running a roller over each one under hot sun.
That rolling is the work that matters now. The Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing is set to open to animals on Dec. 2, 2026, which is about seven weeks from today. The part drivers can see from the freeway is mostly finished. What's left is the soil that ties the bridges into the land, both north of the freeway and along Agoura Road, and it depends on the weather far more than a bridge deck does. That also explains why the closure notices for Agoura Road and Liberty Canyon Road have kept changing this fall.
Above the freeway, the job is mostly done
Caltrans built the project in two stages. Stage 1, the span over the 101, was finished in June 2025. Stage 2 covers the Agoura Road side and includes utility relocation, earthwork and habitat restoration. When Stage 1 ended, the Governor's office said 6,000 cubic yards of "living soil" had been placed on the bridge for planting, along with vegetated sound walls and rock features for habitat.
The plants on top are local. The National Wildlife Federation has said more than one million seeds were collected within five miles of the site. LAist describes dozens of distinct species, all sourced in the Santa Monica Mountains within that same radius.
According to the Times, the second bridge over Agoura Road was finished recently. The Acorn puts the main structure at about 210 feet long and 165 feet wide at its widest point. Together, the two bridges are meant to form one continuous corridor between the Simi Hills and the Santa Monica Mountains. What they don't do yet is meet the ground. The Times reports that crews still need to fill the gap between the freeway span and the road, and between the freeway and the land to the north, with millions of cubic feet of soil.
Why the forecast matters more than the calendar
The soil connection is also the part of the project most easily stopped by bad weather. Robert Rock, principal designer for the crossing, told the Los Angeles Times that the local soil is heavy in clay and silt. When it's wet, it gets dangerously slick, and heavy rain also ruins the layer-by-layer compaction. Some rain is manageable. Flooding would shut work down for safety.
"If you're trying to compact a mud puddle, it wouldn't really compact, right?"
Rock said that at a trailhead off Agoura Road, according to the same Times report. Beth Pratt, president of the Wildlife Crossing Fund and the public face of the project, told the paper, "We're just hoping El Niño's on our side." The Times reports that a strong El Niño is developing this year.
This has happened before. During the record rains of winter 2022-23, water filled the trench for the north wall while crews were compacting soil there. According to the Times, that pushed the original late-2025 completion date back. Here is how the target date has moved since groundbreaking:
- April 22, 2022: Groundbreaking. The project FAQ estimated completion in late 2025.
- Spring 2024: After weather delays, officials moved the target to early 2026, as The Acorn later reported.
- October 2024: The Los Angeles Times reported completion had slipped to sometime in 2026.
- June 2025: With the freeway span done, the state announced a fall 2026 target.
- January 2026: KTLA reported November 2026.
- April 2026: Project partners announced Dec. 2 at an Earth Day news conference on the crossing.
As of the Times update on Oct. 8, Dec. 2 is still the date, as long as heavy rain doesn't stop the soil work. The total cost now stands at $114 million.
How the dirt work shows up on Agoura Road
Moving that much soil means trucks, ramp closures and lane closures, all near Liberty Canyon. Over the past month, the notices have changed several times:
| Notice | What it said | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Caltrans, via MyNewsLA, Sept. 16 | Agoura Road closed between Rondell Street and Hydepark Drive, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, with no cars, bikes or pedestrians allowed through | Through Nov. 30 |
| Ventura County Star, Sept. 20 | Overnight 101 lane closures in both directions between Liberty Canyon and Chesebro roads | Starting Sept. 21, no end date given |
| City of Agoura Hills | Liberty Canyon northbound on-ramp and southbound off-ramp closed 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for soil import work, with Agoura Road open to through traffic | Sept. 30 through Oct. 9 |
The ramp closures fell inside the window of the Sept. 16 notice, and the city's notice says Agoura Road stayed open on those days, so the through-Nov. 30 weekday closure hasn't been running every weekday. Caltrans has said it won't close the Liberty Canyon ramps and Agoura Road at the same time, so when soil comes in through the ramps, the road stays open. The city's notice also warns that intermittent Agoura Road closures may still be needed as work goes on. In practice, the closure in effect on a given weekday depends on which part of the soil work is happening.
The detours change with each closure too. When Agoura Road is closed, drivers are sent onto the 101 between Chesebro Road and Liberty Canyon Road. A free shuttle for pedestrians and cyclists runs every 30 minutes from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. between Dorothy Drive at Chesebro Road and Liberty Canyon Road at Agoura Road. Bus stops inside the closure move temporarily. When the ramps are closed instead, the shuttle is suspended. Northbound drivers head south on Liberty Canyon, west on Agoura Road, and north on Chesebro Road/Palo Comado Canyon Road to get on the 101. Southbound freeway traffic continues to Exit 33 at Lost Hills Road. Every one of these notices is subject to weather, so the posted signs are a better guide than any single date.
You'll see it from a trail, not from the bridge
People won't be able to walk on the crossing after it opens. The project FAQ says the structure will have no trails or public access. Instead, it points visitors to recreation trails on both sides and says a viewing platform "will be built."
The closest trailheads depend on the construction schedule. The north-side trailhead is generally open but can close for safety. Parking at the south-side trailhead on Agoura Road isn't available when the road is closed. For a more reliable starting point, Fran Pavley Meadow at 5425 Cheseboro Canyon Road has trails heading east to Liberty Canyon Open Space and north into the National Park Service's Cheeseboro and Palo Comado Canyons, where the Mountains Recreation & Conservation Authority says developed parking and restrooms are available. Dogs must be on a leash at the meadow.
The National Wildlife Federation offers free docent hikes with views of the site from a distance, by reservation. Its tour page currently says the hikes are on a short break while the reservation system is updated. Until they return, the closest look most people can get is online. Three livestream cameras run by OxBlue show the site, and the images refresh every ten minutes.
Opening day is in Calabasas
The ribbon-cutting takes place at the crossing, but the public celebration is at a ranch in Calabasas. According to LAist and the #SaveLACougars event page, the details are:
- Where: King Gillette Ranch, 26800 Mulholland Highway, Calabasas
- When: Wednesday, Dec. 2, 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Tickets: $10 for ages 13 and up, $5 for children 12 and under. The money goes to the National Wildlife Federation's #SaveLACougars campaign.
- What's there: Exhibits, music and special guests. The ribbon-cutting plays live on a large screen, and visitors can cut their own ribbon at a virtual display.
- Groups: Schools and other groups may qualify for discounted tickets or scholarships.
The ceremony will also be livestreamed, though organizers haven't yet said how to watch. A separate 2 to 5 p.m. reception in Agoura Hills is for donors and sponsors.
Dec. 2 opens the crossing to animals, but work continues
The FAQ says some planting and finishing work will continue after the crossing opens to animals. The Acorn reports plans for another 50,000 native plants across about 12 more acres. It also reports a new partnership between the National Wildlife Federation and the Wildlife Crossing Fund to pay for long-term research, habitat restoration and maintenance once construction ends.
That research is the reason for the whole project. Seth Riley, wildlife branch chief for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, told the Times that 41% of documented mountain lion matings since 2002 have been between close relatives. 2002 is when the ongoing study of lions in and around the Santa Monicas began. The National Park Service has said its genetic monitoring will continue after the crossing is finished, tracking the genetics and health of offspring to see whether animals are using it. The Times reports that a National Park Service team recently found and marked three mountain lion kittens in the Simi Hills.
Shari Schiff was born and raised in the Conejo Valley, and the Shari Schiff Team has watched Liberty Canyon change from a freeway interchange into the start of a wildlife corridor. If you live near Agoura Road and want to know how this project could affect your property's value, we're glad to talk it through. Request your complimentary home valuation, and we'll include the local context the comps don't show.
